George Zimmerman sues NBC

[Lightbulb_on]

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — George Zimmerman sued NBC on Thursday, claiming he was defamed when the network edited his 911 call to police after the shooting of Trayvon Martin to make it sound like he was racist.

The former neighborhood watch volunteer filed the lawsuit seeking an undisclosed amount of money in Seminole County, outside Orlando. Also named in the complaint were three reporters covering the story for NBC or an NBC-owned television station.
The complaint said the airing of the edited call has inflicted emotional distress on Zimmerman, making him fear for his life and causing him to suffer nausea, insomnia and anxiety.

The lawsuit claims NBC edited his phone call to a dispatcher in February. In the call, Zimmerman describes following Martin in the gated community where he lived, just moments before he fatally shot the 17-year-old teen during a confrontation.
"NBC saw the death of Trayvon Martin not as a tragedy but as an opportunity to increase ratings, and so set about to create a myth that George Zimmerman was a racist and predatory villain," the lawsuit claims.

NBC spokeswoman Kathy Kelly-Brown said the network strongly disagreed with the accusations made in the complaint.
"There was no intent to portray Mr. Zimmerman unfairly," she said. "We intend to vigorously defend our position in court."
Three employees of the network or its Miami affiliate lost their jobs because of the changes.
Zimmerman is charged with second-degree murder but has pleaded not guilty, claiming self-defense under Florida's "stand your ground law."

The call viewers heard was trimmed to suggest that Zimmerman volunteered to police, with no prompting, that Martin was black: "This guy looks like he's up to no good. He looks black."
But the portion of the tape that was deleted had the 911 dispatcher asking Zimmerman if the person who had raised his suspicion was "black, white or Hispanic," to which Zimmerman responded, "He looks black."

http://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/television/article/George-Zimmerman-sues-NBC-and-reporters-4097495.php#ixzz2ENySHWfs
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I don't know what the law is on this. Will NBC just claim it is normal to condense content? Any chance this could go through?

[aikoaiko]

1. No, but I think it is a clever way to attempt to rehab his image.

[ZombieHorde]

30. I thought the same thing.

I couldn't tell exactly what he said from the recording, but many people interpreted the sounds as him saying something very racist. Suing NBC for it makes him innocent on that accusation, even if he did say something very racist.

[Angry Dragon]

2. but Fox can outright lie and it is okay

if he wins then everyone should turn around and sue Fox for their lies

[Lightbulb_on]

3. Case by case...

If someone can show specific harm caused by FOX then they should follow in Zimmerman's footsteps.

I do remember that this shortened version of the 911 call was thrown around by the talking heads to demonstrate Zimmerman's racism. There is a legitimate claim here I think.

[Enrique]

7. I wonder if anyone contemplated suing Fox over George Tiller's death

O'Reilly basically issued a fatwa against him on Fox News.

I got this example from a juror who voted to hide your post, which drives me crazy. I think it is a brilliant point, in answer to your very good question. Why not make the brilliant point? Why hide the good question and the good answer?

[HangOnKids]

8. LOL!

[rocktivity]

4. TRANSLATION: George Zimmerman can't afford to pay his lawyers. n/t

rocktivity

[HangOnKids]

5. BAAAZING!

The asshole is looking for another source of money, because even the teabagging shits are tired of him.

[Hoyt]

6. NRA, or other right wing gun groups who support Stand Your Ground Laws -- probably suggested it.

Please, no SYG doesn't apply responses. It does apply if this killer gets off, whether by hung jury or otherwise.

Finding a jury in that area of country to convict will be difficult -- at least one bigot, and supporter of using guns against "suspicious" unarmed teenagers, will unfortunately likely end up on jury.

[HangOnKids]

11. Looks Like The OP Has A Hit And Run

Must not like the replies here.

[Lightbulb_on]

14. Aside from the two other responses out of twelve...

You nailed it...

Is there a requirement to reply to every post in my OPs?

[redgreenandblue]

15. No, but some people like to harass others for not instantly replying to them.

[HangOnKids]

17. I wasn't harassing anybody

Just stating that the OP had not responded to any of the posts in the thread, not just mine. He did come back and give a snarky reply, sort of like yours! Gee thanks for playing!

[redgreenandblue]

18. This whole "they did a hit and run" thing seems to be common here, and it is somewhat rude.

People have different paces when using message boards. The conditions under which people use
a message board can also vastly differ. Sometimes I'm at work and decide to make a quick post, and
only have time to reply maybe half an hour later. Other people may be a home with nothing to do, and
use the board for quasi-realtime conversation.

Both forms are legitimate, but some people seem to infer that a person is trolling just because they don't answer to their posts instantly. I see nothing in the Terms of Service that says you need to operate Democratic Underground like
a chat room.

[HangOnKids]

20. Posting an OP is VASTLY different than just a normal post

Last edited Fri Dec 7, 2012, 05:45 PM - Edit history (1)

YMMV, and thanks for replying.

[Lightbulb_on]

36. As stated above...

Besides #3 and # 10.. You nailed it...

[HangOnKids]

37. Gee you are just one sharp cookie

Very sharp!

[Kingofalldems]

21. Are you a republican?

[Lightbulb_on]

22. Lemme check my registration...

Nope...

[randome]

9. It's bullshit from the Zimmerman side. But why did NBC fire three of its employees over this?

I'm thinking this is a minor side issue that might blow up into something bigger.

[Lightbulb_on]

10. On its face..

... It's pretty inflammatory. Maybe there is a valid explanation.

It helps to think as if this were somebody else that is not attached to something so emotionally charged.

[Initech]

16. Between this and that horribly photoshopped picture of him at the station

I really wonder what kind of bullshit they have planned next. If I were the judge I wouldn't be buying this one bit.

[julian09]

33. It was a NBC affiliate in Miami.

[no_hypocrisy]

12. The Complaint could be dismissed based on:

1. Like it or not, George Zimmerman is a public figure and there's a higher standard of defamation involved. His legal team has access to the media to some degree, mitigating any theoretical damage to his reputation.

2. To be legally recognized as "defamed", your prior reputation must be markedly harmed. Zimmerman's reputation wasn't that great before NBC. To prevail in court, Zimmerman would have to prove that his reputation was worse after NBC broadcast.


I think this maneuver of a civil action is a fishing expedition to get discovery (e.g., documents) from NBC which would have to show where the network had its authority to broadcast about Zimmerman.

[HangOnKids]

13. Fishing Indeed!

Put on the bait and see who bites.

[dems_rightnow]

19. He's not a public figure

You might want to look into the law on that one. The fact that this incident was widely publicized doesn't make him a public figure.

[Whovian]

29. I'll disagree. Once he took it to Hannity he bacema one. n/t

[Kingofalldems]

23. I'm not real concerned about Zimmerman

and his lawsuit. He did shoot and kill someone though.

Just mentioning that because you didn't.

[Lightbulb_on]

24. OP - Paragraph 3

In the call, Zimmerman describes following Martin in the gated community where he lived, just moments before he fatally shot the 17-year-old teen during a confrontation.

Anything else?

Edit: Lets assume that it wasn't there, which it was...

I encourage you to post a poll in GD and get a percentage of how many people do and do not know who George Zimmerman and Trayvon Martin are. What do you think the results will be?

[Kingofalldems]

25. Right. You quote his lawyer trying to slough off blame.

What do YOU have to say about this murder?

[Lightbulb_on]

34. That's what lawyers do...

Maybe you just prefer to hear things that reinforce your previously held opinions. Must be boring...

In any case, the article wasn't really about the case as much as the media coverage which I thought to be interesting. It certainly seems to have interested you.

In any case, you seem to have a bone to pick so pick away...

[OldDem2012]

26. Wait until the judge sees this one! Woooosh!! (Sound of flushing) nt.

[liberalmuse]

27. This POS.

A murderer walks free. He needs to be locked up for the rest of his life.

[OldDem2012]

28. Just curious, but do you think there's any chance GZ's lawyer is lying? Hmmmm. nt.

[Lightbulb_on]

32. He's a lawyer... so yes...

The 911 call was taken out of context however. What it will come down to, IMO, is the reason for it and whether or not Zimmerman and his lawyer can prove that he was harmed.

[julian09]

31. His lawyer is lookiing to make a killing, he knows his client is broke and a scam artist.

[Thinkingabout]

35. If this lae suit is successful then Obama can file suit against many about his citizenship.

He could start with Donald Trump, Sheriff Joe Arpiao and many more, perhaps retire from the office of President as a billionaire. Then also the family could file against Zimmerman for many reasons and he would still be broke. This suit goes along with the distorted view he has on SYG means anything he wants it to be and ergo he is now charged with murder.